The Story of Hiawatha, Adapted from LongfellowLongfellow, Henry Wadsworth
General
The Story of Hiawatha, Adapted from Longfellow
Longfellow, Henry Wadsworth
Hiawatha, active 15th century -- Poetry; Indians of North America -- Poetry; Iroquois Indians -- Kings and rulers -- Poetry
Once Kabibonokka was rushing southward after the departing wild fowl,
when he saw a figure on the frozen moorland. It was Shingebis, the
diver, who had stayed in the country of the North-wind long after his
tribe had gone away, and Shingebis was making ready to pass the winter
there in spite of Kabibonokka and his gusty anger. He was dragging
strings of fish to his winter lodge--enough to last him until spring
should set the rivers free and fill the air once more with wild fowl and
the waters with returning salmon.
What did Shingebis care for the anger of Kabibonokka? He had four great
logs to burn as firewood (one for each moon of the winter), and he
stretched himself before the blazing fire and ate and laughed and sang
as merrily as if the sun were warm and bright without his cheery
wigwam.
"Ho," cried Kabibonokka, "I will rush upon him! I will shake his lodge
to pieces! I will scatter his bright fire and drive him far to the
south!" And in the night Kabibonokka piled the snowdrifts high about the
lodge of Shingebis, and shook the lodge-pole and wailed around the
smoke-flue until the flames flared and the ashes were scattered on the
floor. But Shingebis cared not at all. He merely turned the log until it
burned more brightly, and laughed and sang as he had done before, only a
little louder: "O Kabibonokka, you are but my fellow-mortal!"
"I will freeze him with my bitter breath!" roared Kabibonokka; "I will
turn him to a block of ice," and he burst into the lodge of Shingebis.
But although Shingebis knew by the sudden coldness on his back that
Kabibonokka stood beside him, he did not even turn his head, but blew
upon the embers, struck the coals and made the sparks flicker up the
smoke-flue, while he laughed and sang over and over again: "O
Kabibonokka, you are but my fellow-mortal!"
Drops of sweat trickled down Kabibonokka's forehead, and his limbs grew
hot and moist and commenced to melt away. From his snow-sprinkled locks
the water dripped as from the melting icicles in spring, and the steam
rose from his shoulders. He rushed from the lodge and howled upon the
moorland; for he could not bear the heat and the merry laughter and the
singing of Shingebis, the diver.
"Come out and wrestle with me!" cried Kabibonokka. "Come and meet me
face to face upon the moorland!" And he stamped upon the ice and made it
thicker; breathed upon the snow and made it harder; raged upon the
frozen marshes against Shingebis, and the warm, merry fire that had
driven him away.
Then Shingebis, the diver, left his lodge and all the warmth and light
that was in it, and he wrestled all night long on the marshes with
Kabibonokka, until the North-wind's frozen grasp became more feeble and
his strength was gone. And Kabibonokka rose from the fight and fled from
Shingebis far away into the very heart of his frozen kingdom in the
north.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account